THE FLOWER'S LESSON.

 THERE grew a fragrant¹ rose-tree where the brook² flows,

With two little tender buds, and one full rose;

When the sun went down to his bed in the west,

The little buds leaned on the rose-mother's breast,

While the bright eyed stars their long watch kept,

And the flowers of the valley in their green cradles slept;

Then silently in odors they communed with each other,

The two little buds on the bosom³ of their mother.

"O sister," said the little one, as she gazed at the sky,

"I wish that the Dew Elves, as they wander lightly by,

Would bring me a star; for they never grow dim,

And the Father does not need them to burn round him.

The shining drops of dew the Elves bring each day

And place in my bosom, so soon pass away;

But a star would glitter brightly through the long summer hours,

And I should be fairer than all my sister flowers.

That were better far than the dew-drops that fall

On the high and the low, and come alike to all.

I would be fair and stately, with a bright star to shine

And give a queenly air to this crimson⁴ robe of mine."

And proudly she cried, "These fire-flies shall be

My jewels, since the stars can never come to me."

Just then a tiny dew-drop that hung o'er the dell

On the breast of the bud like a soft star fell;

But impatiently she flung it away from her leaf,

And it fell on her mother like a tear of grief,

While she folded to her breast, with wilful⁵ pride,

A glittering fire-fly that hung by her side.

"Heed," said the mother rose, "daughter mine,

Why shouldst thou seek for beauty not thine?

The Father hath made thee what thou now art;

And what he most loveth is a sweet, pure heart.

Then why dost thou take with such discontent

The loving gift which he to thee hath sent?

For the cool fresh dew will render thee far

More lovely and sweet than the brightest star;

They were made for Heaven, and can never come to shine

Like the fire-fly thou hast in that foolish breast of thine.

O my foolish little bud, do listen to thy mother;

Care only for true beauty, and seek for no other.

There will be grief and trouble in that wilful little heart;

Unfold thy leaves, my daughter, and let the fly depart."

But the proud little bud would have her own will,

And folded the fire-fly more closely still;

Till the struggling insect tore open the vest

Of purple and green, that covered her breast.

When the sun came up, she saw with grief

The blooming of her sister bud leaf by leaf.

While she, once as fair and bright as the rest,

Hung her weary head down on her wounded breast.

Bright grew the sunshine, and the soft summer air

Was filled with the music of flowers singing there;

But faint grew the little bud with thirst and pain,

And longed for the cool dew; but now 't was in vain.

Then bitterly she wept for her folly⁶ and pride,

As drooping⁷ she stood by her fair sister's side.

Then the rose mother leaned the weary little head

On her bosom to rest, and tenderly she said:

"Thou hast learned, my little bud, that, whatever may betide,

Thou canst win thyself no joy by passion or by pride.

The loving Father sends the sunshine and the shower,

That thou mayst become a perfect little flower;—

The sweet dews to feed thee, the soft wind to cheer,

And the earth as a pleasant home, while thou art dwelling⁸ here.

Then shouldst thou not be grateful for all this kindly⁹ care,

And strive to keep thyself most innocent and fair?

Then seek, my little blossom, to win humility¹⁰;

Be fair without, be pure within, and thou wilt¹¹ happy be.

So when the quiet Autumn of thy fragrant life shall come,

Thou mayst pass away, to bloom in the Flower Spirits' home."

Then from the mother's breast, where it still lay hid,

Into the fading bud the dew-drop gently slid;

Stronger grew the little form, and happy tears fell,

As the dew did its silent work, and the bud grew well,

While the gentle rose leaned, with motherly pride,

O'er the fair little ones that bloomed at her side.

 

Night came again, and the fire-flies flew;

But the bud let them pass, and drank of the dew;

While the soft stars shone, from the still summer heaven,

On the happy little flower that had learned the lesson given.

 

The music-loving Elves clapped their hands, as Star-Twinkle ceased; and the Queen placed a flower crown, with a gentle smile, upon the Fairy's head, saying,—

 

"The little bud's lesson shall teach us how sad a thing is pride, and that humility alone can bring true happiness to flower and Fairy. You shall come next, Zephyr¹²."

 

And the little Fairy, who lay rocking to and fro upon a fluttering vine-leaf, thus began her story:—

 

"As I lay resting in the bosom of a cowslip that bent above the brook, a little wind, tired of play, told me this tale of 

1 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

2 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

3 bosom   

n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的

参考例句：

• She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
• A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。

4 crimson   

n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色

参考例句：

• She went crimson with embarrassment.她羞得满脸通红。
• Maple leaves have turned crimson.枫叶已经红了。

5 wilful   

adj.任性的，故意的

参考例句：

• A wilful fault has no excuse and deserves no pardon.不能宽恕故意犯下的错误。
• He later accused reporters of wilful distortion and bias.他后来指责记者有意歪曲事实并带有偏见。

6 folly   

n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话

参考例句：

• Learn wisdom by the folly of others.从别人的愚蠢行动中学到智慧。
• Events proved the folly of such calculations.事情的进展证明了这种估计是愚蠢的。

7 drooping   

adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词

参考例句：

• The drooping willows are waving gently in the morning breeze. 晨风中垂柳袅袅。
• The branches of the drooping willows were swaying lightly. 垂柳轻飘飘地摆动。

8 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

9 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

10 humility   

n.谦逊，谦恭

参考例句：

• Humility often gains more than pride.谦逊往往比骄傲收益更多。
• His voice was still soft and filled with specious humility.他的声音还是那么温和，甚至有点谦卑。

11 wilt   

v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱

参考例句：

• Golden roses do not wilt and will never need to be watered.金色的玫瑰不枯萎绝也不需要浇水。
• Several sleepless nights made him wilt.数个不眠之夜使他憔悴。

12 zephyr   

n.和风，微风

参考例句：

• I feel very comfortable in the zephyr from the sea.从海上吹来的和风令我非常惬意。
• Zephyr,the West Wind,blew away the clouds so that Apollo,the sun god,could shine and made this flower bloom.西风之神吹散了云朵，太阳神阿波罗得以照耀它并使它开花。